Get Smarter About China

Menu

The Sinocism China Newsletter 11.27.13

"Sinocism is the Presidential Daily Brief for China hands"- Evan Osnos, New Yorker Correspondent and National Book Award Winner

Nothing like a couple of B-52s to make the point that the United States is not going to abide by China’s newly declared air defense identification zone (ADIZ) over the East China Sea.

The US sent two of the bombers on a return trip from Guam through the zone. So far there has been no official reaction from Beijing and the online Chinese news reports have only cited foreign media stories about the flight. But it is still early Wednesday here in Beijing and it is hard to see how Beijing can ignore this. Its options beyond rhetoric appear limited however, as Washington appears determined to demonstrate.

We can’t know if Beijing wanted to create an incident so soon after the Third Plenum or if this were another ham-fisted rollout of a policy that, handled better, could have accomplished Beijing’s goals without an ensuing mess. But whatever warm and fuzziness the neighbors felt about the Plenum and the reform talk is gone.

Given the prevailing belief here that without American support the Japanese would no longer dare defy China, do not be surprised by a ratcheting up of anti-American sentiment in China. Perhaps today really is a good day for an American living in Beijing to stop publishing a daily newsletter on current events…

Yes, today is the last day of the regular daily version of The Sinocism China Newsletter. It will return in weekly form in early December. But I am having trouble saying goodbye so I expect there will be occasional daily versions as well.

I want to thank everyone for reading and supporting the newsletter over the last 18 months. Today’s issue is going out to 14,230 people. I hope you will all stay around to see if you find a weekly version useful.

For those of you who contributed a lump sum over the last year and would like a prorated refund, here is a short form through which you can make your request. The form will remain online until December 15.

Thanks again, I will miss this.

Today’s Links:

THE ESSENTIAL EIGHT

U.S. Flies B-52s Into China’s Expanded Air Defense Zone – NYTimes.com American officials said the pair of B-52s carried out a mission that had been planned long in advance of the Chinese announcement last weekend, and that the United States military would continue to assert its right to fly through what it regards as international airspace. Pentagon officials said the two bombers made a round-trip flight from Guam, passing through a zone that covers sea and islands that are the subject of a sovereignty dispute between Japan and China. Officials said there had been no Chinese response to the bomber run.

Related:U.S. Tests Disputed China Air Zone With Flight of B-52s – Bloomberg The flight by U.S. bombers may have been designed in part to discourage Japan from taking any actions that could aggravate tensions further, said Anne-Marie Slaughter, president of the New America Foundation, a public policy institute in Washington. “We are saying to Japan, ‘Do not respond, we are here,’” Slaughter said at a forum yesterday held by the Center for New American Security. Robert Kaplan, a senior fellow at the center, called the U.S. flights a “show of force in defense of Japan” that underscores how seriously the U.S. is taking China’s action.

Related:美轰炸机进入东海防空识别区未携武备未通知中国_国际新闻_环球网so far Chinese media only reporting the B-52 flight in the ADIZ by quoting foreign media…this from the Global Times site//【环球网报道 记者 朱马烈】据法新社、美国《华尔街日报》、CNN等多家媒体11月26日报道，美国军方发言人斯蒂夫•沃伦上校称，美军两架B-52远程战略轰炸机在北京时间26日早晨8时进入中国新设立的东海防空识别区，并且飞入中日有争议的东海岛屿，事前没有通报中国。报道称，这两架B-52轰炸机没有装备武器，没有战机护航。

Related:Air defence zone in East China Sea to remain ‘forever’, say Beijing advisers | South China Morning Post Shi Yinhong , an international relations professor at the Renmin University and an adviser to the State Council, admitted the risks had increased, but China’s leaders were confident they could manage them. He and another central government adviser said the idea of setting up the defence zone had been in the pipeline for some time. They said the current tension with Japan over the sovereignty of the Diaoyu Islands gave Beijing good reason to announce the creation of the zone.

Related:How to Think About the Chinese Air-Defense News – James Fallows – The Atlantic Why risk getting involved, plus angering the Chinese, by sending B-52s through the new ADIZ? I think the Pentagon’s initial explanation is the right one—on the merits, and as a matter of public diplomacy. The United States is not taking sides in this Japan-China island dispute, but it is against either side unilaterally changing the status quo. Also, in continuing “routine training flights”—which is how the B-52 mission was described—it is underscoring the U.S. commitment to existing rules on access to international air space. It was (mildly) risky to send that flight, but it would have been riskier not to react in any way.

Related:Review & Outlook: The B-52s Reply to Beijing – WSJ.com The U.S., Japan and other nations also have air defense identification zones in which planes entering their airspace must declare themselves, but there is a key difference here. China declared its intention to challenge planes and demand that they follow instructions in the new zone regardless of whether they intend to enter Chinese airspace or are merely transiting through the area. This is an attempt to interfere with the normal rules of global navigation and assert de facto Chinese control over a huge chunk of the Western Pacific…By trying to use force to seize control over the Senkakus’ region, Beijing is edging closer to naked aggression. It has to be shown that such bullying won’t succeed.

Related:China air defense zone points to the long game – Yahoo News Washington, which has hundreds of military aircraft based in the region, says it has zero intention of complying. Japan likewise has called the zone invalid, unenforceable and dangerous, while Taiwan and South Korea, both close to the U.S., also rejected it…Beijing was also responding in kind to Japan’s strict enforcement of its own air defense zone in the East China Sea, said Dennis Blasko, an Asia analyst at think tank CNA’s China Security Affairs Group and a former Army attache in Beijing. The Japanese zone, in place since the 1960s, overlaps extensively with the newly announced Chinese zone. Japan, which keeps a public record of all foreign incursions into its zone, actually extended it westward by 22 kilometers (14 miles) in May.

Related:BBC News – Two Japanese airlines to disregard China air zone rules Two of Japan’s biggest airlines have agreed to abide by a government request not to implement China’s new air defence zone rules, officials say. All Nippon Airlines and Japan Airlines say that they will stop filing flight plans demanded by China on routes through the zone, set up on Saturday.

Related:Australia summons Chinese ambassador over airspace announcement | Reuters Australia summoned China’s ambassador to express concern over its imposition of an “Air Defence Identification Zone” over the East China Sea, the foreign minister said on Tuesday, decrying the move as unhelpful in a region beset by tension. “The timing and the manner of China’s announcement are unhelpful in light of current regional tensions, and will not contribute to regional stability,” Julie Bishop said in a statement.

Related:Asia Times Online :: China’s ADIZ undermines regional stability–Bonnie Glaser China may also be responding to recent Japanese warnings that it reserves the right to shoot down unmanned drones that pose a threat to Japanese airspace. By creating an ADIZ that includes the Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands, Beijing may believe it has established a basis for challenging and, if necessary, taking action against Japanese aircraft operating in this zone. The ADIZ may also signal a Chinese intention to increase flights in the territorial airspace around the disputed islands as a demonstration of its sovereignty and jurisdictional claim. China has only flown an aircraft in the territorial airspace around the island once, in February 2013, when a civilian maritime surveillance Y-12 aircraft entered the airspace. Beijing may also seek to collect and publish data on the number of times that Chinese jets scramble to intercept Japanese fighters that enter into its ADIZ. Japan already publishes data on “intrusions” by Chinese and Russian aircraft; China may see benefits in demonstrating to its domestic audience that the party and military are doing their utmost to defend Chinese sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Related:Imitation Is the Securest Form of Flattery – By Isaac Stone Fish | Foreign Policy Since taking office in November 2012, Xi has instituted a number of policies that demonstrate a solidification of control of the Communist Party and a streamlining of China’s bureaucracy. But, in doing so he’s liberally borrowing from the U.S. government’s institutional hierarchy and best practices, implementing a series of institutional changes that could be called American reform with Chinese characteristics. And for those concerned about a rising China challenging the United States, this is worrisome indeed.

Exclusive: U.S. expands China hiring probe to Morgan Stanley | Reuters Apart from JPMorgan and Morgan Stanley, Reuters could not determine which other banks are under scrutiny. The SEC has asked firms across the global financial services industry to provide information about their hiring of the relatives of government officials in China, said the two people, who were not authorized to speak publicly…Authorities’ scrutiny of Morgan Stanley’s dealings in China comes after Justice Department officials repeatedly praised the bank’s “rigorous compliance program” to prevent corruption. In various speeches encouraging firms to better police for bribery, officials have pointed to Morgan Stanley’s vigilance as the reason why the bank did not face charges after its former top real estate dealmaker in China pleaded guilty last year to conspiring to evade internal controls to enrich himself and a Chinese government official.// Morgan Stanley and Garth Peterson got off easy for his corrupt real estate dealings, just 9 months in jail. Anyone know where he went after jail? Long backgrounder on his case from 2009

Tuberculosis Prize Gets Caught in Politics – WSJ.com While the Kochon prize-selection committee of TB experts chose the Tibetan program, according to people close to the selection process, the winner must be approved by the director-general of the World Health Organization, Margaret Chan. A WHO spokesman confirmed this and said the WHO administration, which advises the director-general, didn’t approve the choice because the hospital has ties to the Tibetan government-in-exile. The Central Tibetan Administration, as that entity is known, isn’t recognized by the United Nations. The WHO is the U.N.’s public-health agency.

China probe may be aimed at Qualcomm’s 4G royalties | Reuters The probe by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), China’s top economic planning body and price regulator, is a likely pre-emptive measure that will allow China’s telecom providers to gain leverage in royalty negotiations ahead of the rollout of new high-speed mobile networks, analysts said. China Mobile, China Unicom and China Telecom are investing more than 100 billion yuan ($16.4 billion) in system equipment for the next-generation wireless networks, which are expected to be introduced nationwide over the coming year.

New York Times CEO says Chinese language site under review | Reuters New York Times Co Chief Executive Officer Mark Thompson said the publisher is going to keep all its money losing operations under review – including those in China – as he seeks to negotiate the newspaper’s increasing shift towards a digital landscape… “The fact that we can’t be seen officially inside China means the revenue is not as large as we would have wished it to have been,” he said. “If it’s a loss-making operation, they are all under constant review.” // is the Wall Street Journal Chinese site now blocked?

Record Spread Blowout Sparks Mini-Crisis Warning: China Credit – Bloomberg The extra yield investors demand to hold three-year AAA corporate bonds instead of government notes surged 35 basis points last week to 182 basis points, the biggest increase since data became available in September 2007, Chinabond indexes show. That exceeds the similar spread in India of 120 basis points. The benchmark seven-day repurchase rate has averaged 4.45 percent in November, the highest since a record cash crunch in June and up from 3.21 percent a year earlier.

Special Report: How China took control of an OPEC country’s oil | Reuters Shunned by most lenders since a $3.2 billion debt default in 2008, Ecuador now relies heavily on Chinese funds, which are expected to cover 61 percent of the government’s $6.2 billion in financing needs this year. In return, China can claim as much as 90 percent of Ecuador’s oil shipments in coming years, a rare feat in today’s diversified oil market…A small OPEC exporter, Ecuador pumps around 520,000 barrels per day (bpd), or 5 percent as much oil as kingpin Saudi Arabia. But China’s role in the Andean country shows how the Asian giant’s oil firms are becoming powerhouse traders in energy markets far from home. The oil that Ecuador sells to Chinese firms can be traded anywhere. Yet less than 15,000 bpd is being shipped to China this year, down nearly 40 percent from 2012. Most is sent to the United States.

Chow Tai Fook Profit Almost Doubles on Higher Gold Demand – Bloomberg Retail sales of gold in China jumped between April and June as global bullion prices plunged, aiding Chow Tai Fook and smaller competitors such as Luk Fook Holdings International Ltd. (590) The Chinese economy is showing signs of resilience and demand for jewelry continues to be strong, the company said in its statement, citing government data.

Global Free Trade Talks Collapse – ABC News Negotiators came tantalizingly close but failed to clinch a global free trade deal after more than a decade of talks that could have boosted the world economy by $1 trillion, the head of the World Trade Organization said Tuesday. Roberto Azevedo said diplomats from the WTO’s 159 members tried hard but “cannot cross the finish line here in Geneva” ahead of a summit where ministers were to have signed the deal in Bali, Indonesia next week.

国税总局：“房地产公司欠税3.8万亿”是误读_网易新闻中心 State Administration of Taxation says the CCTV report claiming 3.8 Trillion of unpaid land appreciation tax misunderstood and misrepresented the issue, but the SAT declines to say that the developers do not have any LAT issues// 针对媒体日前调查报道称国内多家知名房地产公司拖欠土地增值税超过3.8万亿一事，国家税务总局昨日回应称，有关人员对土地增值税欠税的巨额推算，是对税收政策和征管方式的误解和误读。但对于当前市场比较关注的土地增值税是否存在大面积没有清缴的问题，国税总局并没有给出明确答案。

Mogul’s tax ‘excuses’ rejected – BUSINESS – Globaltimes.cn Property mogul Ren Zhiqiang’s rebuttal of a China Central Television (CCTV) report revealing a huge amount of unpaid land appreciation tax (LAT) by major real estate firms was rejected Monday by the lawyer who calculated the unpaid taxes. “Ren’s arguments are nothing but bad excuses used by property developers to blindfold the public,” Li Jinsong, a Beijing-based lawyer and certified tax agent, told the Global Times on Monday. Li, who previously worked for tax authorities in East China’s Jiangxi Province for over 10 years, found that 45 major listed property companies in the country had failed to pay 3.8 trillion yuan ($623.58 billion) in LAT between 2005 and 2012. Li said his calculations were based on official data.

China c.bank says to rely on reform, not loose policy, to underpin growth | Reuters China will rely on market-based reforms to unleash fresh growth drivers to support the economy, not ultra-loose policies, central bank chief Zhou Xiaochuan said on Tuesday. China’s economic growth is within a “reasonable range” while inflation and employment remain generally steady as the government pushes structural changes, Zhou said in a speech at a financial forum.

China Said to Plan Crackdown on Banks’ Evasion of Lending Limits – Bloomberg China has drafted rules banning banks from evading lending limits by structuring loans to other financial institutions so that they can be recorded as asset sales, two people with knowledge of the matter said. The rules drafted by the China Banking Regulatory Commission ban borrowers from using resale or repurchase agreements to move assets off their balance sheets, said the people, who asked not to be identified because they aren’t authorized to discuss the rules publicly.

In China, Stabilizing Producer Prices Signal a Turning Point – China Real Time Report – WSJ PPI is next released Dec. 9 and if it stabilizes, it could be an indicator that China’s economy is in better shape. The PPI is closely correlated with gross domestic product, according to Andrew Batson of research firm GK Dragonomics, and a good barometer of the overall health of the manufacturing sector. Firmer prices would be a signal of higher demand, whether domestically generated or driven by a pickup in exports as the world economy staggers back toward normality

Chinese Cities Unveil New Property Cooling Measures amid Pressure-Caijing At least 10 Chinese cities have come out with their own property cooling measures so far in the recent two months, in response to sizzling housing prices in major cities across the country. Nanjing, the capital city of Jiangsu province in east China, is the latest to join the rush into tighter regulation, saying it will the raise the minimum down payment ratio for second-home purchases while increasing supplies of affordable homes.

住建部约谈引发二线城市“加码”调控 新华社——经济参考网so much for the market playing the decisive role in the real estate markets // 《经济参考报》记者获悉，上述城市集中发布调控新政源于住建部日前对房价涨幅过高的城市再次施压。 据权威人士透露，上周南京、武汉、厦门等涨幅居前的二线城市再次被住建部约谈。“此次约谈与8月底那次不同的是，此次住建部要求涨幅较高的城市房管部门相关领导，甚至有的城市是副市长带队，亲自到住建部进行汇报。”

临时股东会傅成玉默哀缄口 事故殃及炼厂300亿可转债延期_21世纪网how much pressure is Sinopec chairman Fu Chengyu under in wake of Qingdao disaster, and could he lose his job over this? // 大会结束后，傅成玉再次在众人的簇拥下匆匆离开会场。从会场走出后，傅成玉面对追问未做任何表态，只是说“现在国家正在调查，我不能说任何话，说了就干预调查了”，“有人说可以说，我不能说”。

China seeks to boost trade with ex-communist Europe | Reuters China wants to double trading volumes with central and eastern members of the European Union in the next five years, Li Keqiang said on his first visit to the former communist bloc as premier… “China-CEE trade accounts for one tenth of China-EU trade,” said Li. “We need to strive to double our trade volumes … in next five years … We need to work together to build large scale infrastructure projects.”

China Exclusive: China to open up wider: minister – Xinhua | English.news.cn Faced with a complex development environment, China needs to promote reforms at home and open up wider to the outside world, Chinese Minister of Commerce Gao Hucheng has told Xinhua in an exclusive interview. A plan, unveiled by the Communist Party of China Central Committee earlier this month, vows to build a more open economy and make arrangements for further opening up, Gao said. Arrangements and measures, if implemented, are set to provide new vigor and momentum for further development, the minister said

Bitcoin, you have a China problem | PandoDaily Bitcoin bulls are eager to see the currency spread and gain broader global adoption, and thus may not view this as a problem. But for a currency touted for its independence from government interference, the growing concentration of Chinese influence over this cryto-currency wealth creates a single point of failure for the system. The same would be true if you replaced China with any other country (assuming it could generate similar trading volumes), but the fact that it is the notoriously unpredictable China doesn’t inspire confidence.

Rémy Cointreau went on a bender in China and now it has a hangover – Quartz As if the company didn’t have enough China headaches, it’s also struggling with its 27% stake in Dynasty Fine Wines, a Chinese winemaker that has failed to cough up paperwork after warning shareholders in Feb. 2013 of a loss for 2012. Rémy Cointreau recognized an impairment charge of €10.9 million for Apr.-Sep. 2013, adding to the €15.9 million it accepted for the prior half-year. The company says it hasn’t been able to see Dynasty’s financial reports for 2012, nor its 2013 interim results. ”So we can’t do anything. We’re in there, we can’t get out, we can’t get in. We have to wait until the investigation is complete until the results of the audit will be published,” said a company representative said in the call, according to an unedited FactSet transcript. “[W]e don’t have access to the accounts because everything is blocked by this investigation.”

Closer Look: Reform Aimed at Official Cars Seen as Positive Step – Caixin The plan calls for official cars to be limited to specific government needs like policing and emergency services, and for other needs to be met by rentals or taxis. The reform also says officials must keep public records of who used what cars, why and how much it cost the government. Furthermore, government agencies that need cars must sign contracts with rental or taxi companies and state the responsibilities and rights of involved parties. Officials are to secure the contracts through public bidding. The government spent more than 9 billion yuan on receptions, vehicles and official trips in 2011 – a trio of expenses that is commonly known as “sangong.” Of that, 6 billion yuan went toward cars. Many in the public associate black Audis as the official car of officialdom.

China Takes Away Civil Servants’ Official Cars in Anticorruption Crusade – China Real Time Report – WSJ Cars no longer needed because of the new rules will be disposed of via a public bidding process or other forms of auctions, the guidelines said. In the future, civil servants will be allowed to select their preferred mode of travel and will be reimbursed under a transportation-allowance system. UBS Securities estimated the value of auto sales to governments in China at about 120 billion yuan, or roughly $20 billion, a year, which looks set to decline given the ongoing fleet-reform regulations, said Andreas Graef of management-consulting firm A.T. Kearney.

Social media will drive Chinese liberalisation – Google’s Schmidt | Reuters The most interesting thing about talking to the government, from the president all the way to the governors, is that they are obsessed with the Internet, which is why they passed these laws,” Schmidt told the conference, which was organised by independent policy institution Chatham House….”You simply cannot imprison enough Chinese people when they all agree to something,” he said. “You won’t be able to stop it even if you don’t like it, and it will cause a liberalisation.” // and people wonder why Beijing worried about the Internet and foreigners, when so many keep saying how it will be used to change the political order, and why China has effectively de-Googled its internet and mobile phones?

On Xia Yeliang… | Sinostand This post is in regards to an article I published in The Atlantic on October 22 about dismissed Peking University Professor Xia Yeliang. After receiving excessive scorn, I wrote this post a few days later, but ultimately decided it was too long-winded and canned it after I was invited on Sinica to discuss the issue. However, even more than a month later, people continue to misrepresent what I actually wrote and said. Given the gravity of the case, I decided to go ahead and publish it

FOREIGN AND DEFENSE AFFAIRS

Senior official stresses military secrecy – Xinhua A senior official with the Central Military Commission (CMC) has called for tightened military secrecy as the foundation for the army’s capacity to join and win a war. “We should clearly realize the austere situation of the current secrecy work and research to solve problems and weak spots,” said CMC vice chairman Fan Changlong at a meeting on military secrecy on Tuesday.

Helicopters to ‘protect’ government–Phnom Penh Post As political deadlock continues, Minister of Defence Tea Banh yesterday used the unveiling of 12 Chinese-made military helicopters to announce that the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces stand “ready to protect” the government and constitution, following what he called “free and fair” elections in July. Speaking in the presence of the Chinese ambassador to Cambodia, Bu Jianguo, at a ceremony to show off the Z-9 helicopters – acquired as part of a $195 million deal with China inked in 2011 – Banh said the current one-party National Assembly had legitimacy and thus the support of the military.

Media Figures Stand Behind Bloomberg In China Scandal–Buzzfeed Bloomberg is under fire for, according to reports in the New York Times and Financial Times, killing an article that reportedly focused on China’s richest man, Wang Jianlin, “and his financial ties to the families of party leaders.” (Bloomberg News chief Matthew Winkler said the article was delayed only because it wasn’t fully reported.) Doctoroff, in a brief speech, appeared to refer obliquely to the controversy. “We face tough chokes and second guessing every day,” promising to “listen to different opinions” and to “keep shining that disinfecting light.” // except where that light might hurt terminal sales?

Spies worry over doomsday cache stashed by ex-NSA contractor Snowden | Reuters It is unclear whether U.S. or allied intelligence agencies-or those of adversary services such as Russia’s and China’s- know where the material is stored and, if so, have tried to unlock it. One former senior U.S. official said that the Chinese and Russians have cryptographers skilled enough to open the cache if they find it.

China Gets Ready to Send ‘Jade Rabbit’ Rover to the Moon – China Real Time Report – WSJ The name is a reference to a mythical hare said to live on the moon along with the moon goddess Chang’e. Yutu is sometimes depicted using a mortar and pestle to mix an elixir of immortality, a task that earns him a mention in “Old Dust” by celebrated Tang dynasty poet Li Bai: “One brief journey between heaven and earth/Then, sadly, we are the same as the dust of ten thousand ages/The rabbit on the moon mixes his medicine in vain.”

Taiwan’s BMD Radar Gives Unique Data on China | Defense News | defensenews.com “It’s more of an intelligence collection system than a ballistic missile defense warning system,” said one US defense industry source. “Taiwan can see almost all of China’s significant Air Force sorties and exercises from this radar.”..The question many are asking, of which no one can agree, is whether the US military, via the US Air Force’s Defense Security Program (DSP), has access to the data collected by the facility. DSP monitors ballistic missile launches and nuclear detonations. One US defense industry analyst with close ties to Taiwan’s military said the DSP has access to it.

Macau’s junket operators prowl Asia to expand VIP business | Reuters “The junkets are very aware and are looking all over Asia to expand. It’s the biggest expansion phase ever right now,” said Ben Lee, Asian gaming consultant at Macau-based consultancy IGamiX. Offshore expansion is just one way the junket operators – which earn commissions from casinos to attract “big whale” gamblers – are responding to pressures at home as Beijing strives to turn Macau into a mass-market tourist destination.

TECH AND MEDIA

Surviving Chairman Ma: Life in the shadow of China’s Alibaba | Reuters Shenzhen-based Suning Commerce Group Co Ltd is looking to tap Silicon Valley nous to help it with a formidable challenge: succeeding in China’s booming e-commerce market in the face of the behemoth that is Alibaba…”We don’t believe the market can be dominated by one company in e-commerce in China – namely Alibaba. The Chinese market is very wide and deep, with a huge population,” Zhang Jindong, CEO and chairman of Suning, told Reuters in an interview at the firm’s new Palo Alto base.

Tencent vs. Qihoo case: which do the people support? Which do the people support? A poll answered by more than 14,000 people as of press time on Sina Tech shows overwhelming support for Qihoo. 69 percent voted in favor of Qihoo, 81 percent said Tencent abused its monopoly position, and 61 percent said monopolistic behavior has intensified unfair competition over the last three years.

Insurance Firm Sells Policies for Taobao Vendors – Caixin A scheme operated by Taobao allows shop owners to make the same promise to customers but requires them to deposit a sum, perhaps 1,000 yuan, into a fund from which money is drawn to cover customer refunds, Li Jian, Zhong An’s product manager, said. By contrast, they need to pay only yuan with Zhong Le Bao. This will free part of the money locked up in the seller’s margin deposit and improve the efficiency of capital usage, he said. For customers, it will serve as a guarantee of speedy refund.

‘Gravity’ Thrills, ‘Catching Fire’ Chills as China’s Box Office Tops $3 Billion | chinafilmbiz 中国电影业务 Gravity scored the PRC’s fifth best opening of the year with a nearly $36 million liftoff, as U.S.-made films grabbed the top four box office spots and six of the top seven in the week ending November 24th…The fourth quarter has so far been a good one so far for Hollywood, with American movies capturing a 55 percent share of the market during the period from October 1st through November 24th. U.S. films are now at their peak market share for 2013 with over 47 percent of all China box office revenue, though that figure will ebb back to about 42 percent as local Chinese releases dominate the calendar throughout December.

SOCIETY, ART, SPORTS, CULTURE AND HISTORY

Wang Leehom is Taken | Cfensithis was the top topic on Sina Weibo for a while this AM, not the ADIZ or B-52s// The past few years your comments here have often been about “hope you find your Forever Love”. I’m lucky to have met a girl to hold hands with and share my future. She’s not in the entertainment business so you don’t know her, but I also don’t want to create the opportunity for rumors so… her name is Lee Jinglei, she’s 27 years old and a graduate student at Columbia. Wang Baba & Mama love her and I hope you will too.

ENERGY, ENVIRONMENT, SCIENCE AND HEALTH

Industries closed over key reservoir’s pollution – Xinhua Select restaurants, tourist attractions and construction projects have been shuttered around the pollution-plagued Danjiangkou reservoir in central China, the Ministry of Environmental Protection announced on Tuesday. The reservoir, the water source of China’s mega south-to-north water diversion project, is expected to supply water through canals and pipelines to the parched northern regions, including Beijing, from 2014. However, sewage has been discharged untreated into the five rivers flowing into the reservoir, prompting local authorities in the concerned Henan, Hubei and Shaanxi provinces to take pollution control measures.

全国假日办关于法定节假日调休安排的调查问卷 –旅游频道_权威全面报道旅游–人民网another State Council Holiday Planning Office survey on scheduling official holidays// 根据《全国年节及纪念日放假办法》，为使我国法定节假日调休安排更加科学合理，汇总此前问卷调查社会各方面提出的意见，现提出3个调休方案，再次公开征求意见，欢迎参与。

China loosens requirements for private pilot licenses – Xinhua The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) announced on Tuesday that it will ease requirements for gaining a private pilot license (PPL), a move that should allow more Chinese to fulfill their flying dreams. The requirements on theory tests, practice tests as well as physical examinations will be loosened for those applying for a PPL, with previous standards almost as high as those for acquiring commercial pilot licenses, according to the CAAC statement.

BEIJING

Beijing to monitor health effects of smog |Hot Issues |chinadaily.com.cn The city’s center for disease control and prevention will set up monitoring stations in 11 communities to monitor air quality, and will dispatch professionals to test air samples on a regular basis. Also, the city’s authorities will collect data from hospital medical records to determine the relationship between the smog and the health of residents.